In a world where the boundary between human reason and animal instinct is blurring, Hugh Jackman stars in ‘The Sheep Detectives’, a thriller that redefines the police genre to question justice under the premise: What if sheep were able to help solve a crime?
“There’s a lesson in that sometimes all it takes is one person to believe in you: and that’s enough to maybe make a whole group believe in you, include you or see you,” U.S. actor Nicholas Braun tells EFE in an interview.
The star of the acclaimed ‘Succession’ gives life in this project, which arrives this Friday on the big screen, to the policeman Tim Derry, a lonely officer, the only one in the picturesque town of Denbook, devastated by the sudden and mysterious death of the shepherd of a flock of sheep, George Hardy (Jackman).
The challenge of sorting out the pieces of a plot is complicated by the arrival of George’s almost unknown daughter, Rebecca Hampstead (Molly Gordon), whose presence in town adds a layer of mystery and sensitivity to the plot.
“Tim starts with virtually no one believing in him, not even himself really believing in himself. He wanted it to be a death by heart attack and not a murder,” Braun adds.
On his way to solve the riddle, the shepherd’s sheep begin to help him deliver justice. “For some reason no one believes in him and they look down on him. I thought it was an important theme that the film deals with, how a person feels when they realize they are loved, included or appreciated,” he explains.
The power of a herd: Hugh Jackman in a leading role in ‘The Sheep Detectives’.
Rebecca’s figure arouses immediate suspicion, navigating an emotional duality. “She’s mourning the death of her father, but she’s also not revealing her secrets; she’s clearly hiding something,” Gordon explains to EFE.
For the performer, the main attraction of the project, based on the successful novel ‘The Sheep of Glennkill’ by Leonie Swann, lay in the change of hierarchy: “I was excited about a film where humans are not the main characters; I felt that we were at the service of the animals and I think I love that,” she confesses about this unique cinematic experience.
This dedication of the actors to the flock created an atmosphere where the human cast seems to roll along with the sheep.
In fact, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who lends her voice to Lily, the sheep who leads the group, approached it from this perspective to give her character the active role in the plot.
“It really sounds like the sheep is talking; I didn’t think about making it sound like a sheep, I focused more on making it sound honest,” the ‘Seinfield’ performer tells EFE.
Beyond a police investigation with comedic overtones, the plot of this story sends a message that connects with diverse sensibilities.
“It has something for everyone. It’s a murder mystery, but it also has a lot of depth and talks about how hard it is to be alive and understand that loss exists. I think it deals with grief in a beautiful way,” Gordon defends.
“If you try to talk to someone, get close or establish a connection – whether at work or in my career when talking to a director – sometimes it takes a bit of courage. But if a person manages to see you, you can be included,” Braun said, reported Agencia EFE.
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